Thursday, March 27, 2014

The March 2014 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Rebecca of BakeNQuilt. She challenged us to learn to make classic nougat and to make it our own with our choice of flavors and add-ins.

Nougat.

From the moment I saw this month's challenge, I couldn't wait to get started.

Now, the nougat that we were making here is not the same nougat that most of us think of from candy bars. This nougat is more closely related to marshmallows, and is a sticky, chewy, sweet candy, usually with nuts mixed in. And I couldn't wait to try it.

As I am completely comfortable with making marshmallows, I wasn't intimidated by this process. There were only a few differences.

The first difference is the syrup. The syrup for nougat is made with honey, where marshmallows are made with corn syrup.

The syrup mixture is then carefully heated and boiled, whcih is where this comes in handy.

I boiled my syrup until it was 280 degrees.

While this was cooking, I prepared the other half. Whipping up an egg white. For my marshmallow recipe, I use gelatin. For these, it's more like traditional marshmallow cream recipes - egg whites whipped to soft peaks.

And then I carefully and slowly poured the syrup down the sides of my mixer, which was beating at full speed.

This is whipped up at high speed for about 10 minutes. Just like marshmallows.

This is the time when any mix-ins can be... well... mixed... in. Even though, due to the raw egg whites, I knew little man wouldn't be tasting these, I still opted not to mess with nuts (don't want to contaminate my mixer or anything). So I thought... why not chocolate chips?

In theory, not a bad idea. But let me warn you... the nougat is still warm at this point. Which makes stirring in chocolate chips...

...a little messy. But once it cools down, it looks kind of marble-y cool.

So I cut it into pieces and we tried it!

This stuff is fun. But a little goes a long way! And it is definitely sticky! I am sure that, depending on the temperature of the syrup, you can play with the consistency a bit, and I bet it's really good with other things mixed in.

Seriously, this was an awesome challenge. Rebecca, I can't thank you enough!!!

You are supposed to use edible rice paper on both sides of this sticky treat and if you plan on packaging and giving out to friends or storing for a while it would be wise to find some. I didn’t and I just used parchment paper sprayed with cooking spray and for serving in our house it worked out just fine.
Prepare and 8×8 inch baking pan with parchment paper or rice paper sprayed with cooking spray. I used a baking sheet, covered in parchment and sprayed generously with cooking spray.
Combine sugar, honey and 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of pan. Increase heat and boil until thermometer registers 280 degrees.
Meanwhile, beat the egg white and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until soft peaks form. With the mixer running, slowly and very carefully, stream hot syrup into egg whites. Beat until the meringue is thick and has cooled slightly, about 10–12 minutes. Remove the bowl from the mixer and your chose mix-ins to the meringue; mix nougat with a rubber spatula to distribute evenly.
Spread the nougat on the prepared pan. Top with second sheet of rice paper or sprayed parchment. Use spatula to press the nougat into an even layer. Let nougat set at least 2 hours, but overnight is best.
Cut with a knife and store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

There's been a lot of talk going around the 'net about how some people are making a bigger deal of holidays than they really should. Particularly minor holidays and "made up" holidays. With the popularity of facebook and pinterest and all kinds of other social media "brag" sites, it seems that there are a number of people out there who feel like it's unnecessary pressure and expectations to create big, elaborate celebrations out of every tiny thing.

Me? Any celebration that involves food, you know I'm in. Because why not add a little fun to each day? Especially when it's fun of the delicious variety!

So earlier this month, on March 14th (3/14), it was Pie Day. For us math nerds. Pie = pi = 3.14 = 3/14. Get it? And... it's an excuse to eat pie!!

I'd originally wanted to have pie for each meal that day. Starting with quiche for breakfast. But little miss doesn't like quiche. And little man can't eat it. And daddy can't have the crust. So I'd have been making 4 totally different quiche-style breakfasts. Umm... never mind. So I decided to concentrate on dinner. We had pizza. Pizza pie. It works, right? Individual pizzas - daddy's with a cauliflower (carb free) crust, little man's dairy free. Easy enough to customize.

Then I got to concentrate on dessert.

I made a dairy free pie crust using coconut oil instead of butter (based on this recipe), then set to planning my fillings. For one pie, I made a Dutch apple pie. Again, dairy free.

But for the second, I wanted something more decadent. So I decided on chocolate.

I've had my eye on vegan cream pies for a while. Vegan cheesecakes, vegan chocolate cream pies... the recipes all say how totally simple they are. But they all include an ingredient that... well... I've never used before... and that several members of my family who shall remain nameless would not want to try if they knew it was there.

No, it's not those melted chocolate chips I'm showing you. It's what they get blended with in the food processor.

And if you've ever made a vegan pie, you probably know what it is.

Tofu.

Yup - silken tofu. It holds things together, gives the pie body, and takes on the flavor of whatever you put with it. And it's really just that easy.

Blend everything together and pour it in the pre-baked crust!

Then I made the mistake of letting everyone eat it all before taking more photos.

Oops.

But I promise - it was delicious, it sliced up like a dream, and even my tofu-fearing family absolutely loved it! Which is encouraging me to try to make other vegan pies, too!

Combine the flour, salt and sugar, then cut in the coconut oil unti lthe mixture resembles coarse sand. You can do this manually (whisk the dry ingredients, use two knives to cut in the coconut oil) or with a food processor. Slowly mix in the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together (if using food processor, stop as soon as it forms a ball). Divide the dough into two portions, shape each into a disc and wrap with plastic wrap. You can put the dough into the refrigerator if you are not ready to roll it out just yet, but you will need to let it warm up a bit, as the coconut oil firms up in the cold and is difficult to roll out.

To bake the pie crust to prepare to make the pie here, preheat the oven to 425 degrees, take one of the discs of dough, roll it to fit your pie plate (I use a 9-inch pie plate) anad gently fit it in, shaping the edges as you'd like. Line the pie crust with either parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill with pie weights. You do not need "formal" pie weights - you can use dried beans (though you can't cook them for eating afterwards -I just save them in a baggie and reuse them as pie weights) or I read that you can use un-popped popcorn kernals, which you're supposed to be able to stil pop afterwards! Either way, make sure you weigh down the crust a bit so that it doesn't puff up while baking. Bake for about 15 minutes (you can peek in - the edges should just start getting golden brown), then carefully remove the parchment/foil with the pie weights and bake for an additional 5 minutes to get the center a bit golden as well. Cool before filling.

Melt chocolate chips using your preferred method (mmicrowave, double boiler - whatever you like!). Once the chocolate is melted, combine all of the ingredients in a food processor and process until fully blended and smooth.
Pour filling into prepared (and cooled!) pie crust and place the pie in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Well I just had to share this one with you. Because it's just that good.

And the best part? It's super simple, as well.

A couple of weeks ago, my meal plan called for roasted chicken, with potatoes and asparagus listed as the sides.

Now, I'd ordinarily just toss the potatoes in the oven while the chicken roasts and have baked potatoes. Easy, right? But then I remembered seeing a recipe on my assigned blog for the best skillet potatoes. I mean... it said "best" right in the title! How could I not try it?

We've all made skillet potatoes... chop some potatoes, season as you wish, toss 'em in a pan and cook until their done. How are these different?

They start the same... chop some potatoes, add some seasonings....

...but before you toss them in a pan, choose your cooking fat very carefully. Because it can add flavor and make the potatoes awesome. This recipe called for two fats. Butter, which I replaced with olive oil so that little man could enjoy them too, and... bacon fat.

Yup.

And wouldn't you know... we save our bacon fat.

Melt the bacon fat, heat it with the olive oil, then add the potatoes. Then be a little patient. You don't want them to burn, but you want to make sure they get nice and crispy on all sides.

Now, the problem is that potatoes take a long time to cook. So how do you keep them from burning, but also keep them from losing that crispiness you just worked to achieve? Lower the heat but, whatever you do, do not cover the pan. Shake 'em and toss 'em as needed to keep the heat and cook even, and I promise, you're going to love the results.

1 pound of potatoes (I used russetts), cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon bacon drippings
1 tablespoon butter (I used olive oil to keep these dairy free)
Salt, pepper and seasonings to taste (I used a sprinkle of garlic powder and a sprinkle of thyme)

Heat the bacon drippings and butter (oil) in a large skillet over medium-high heat until nice and hot (if using butter, the butter will get bubbly).
Add the potatoes and season generously with salt, pepper and your choice of seasonings. Cook, stirring occasionally until the potatoes are browned on all sides. Lower the heat to medium-low and continue cooking until the potatoes are cooked through (do not cover, or those crispy brown skins will get soggy!) Serve immediately.

This month we made sourdough Irish soda breads! Now, we have a very traditional recipe for Irish soda bread that we've made for... well... generations. It's been in daddy's family for generations. So changing it up... well... I wasn't sure I could get away with it. So how did I make it work? I made pre-St. Paddy's Day dinner! I made the traditional corned beef and cabbage, but a week early! And then, for the bread, made this sourdough version of the bread.

There are a couple of "non-standards" in this recipe, at least compared to the traditional "peasant" version we are used to.

This one contains oats...

(and a bit of sugar!)

It's also enriched with an egg and a bit of liquid fat (I used canola oil).

(mixed in with the sourdough starter!)

But it comes together like usual. Whisk the dry, add the wet, barely mix, just enough to combine...

...then roughly shape it into a ball.

The other change is the cross in the top of the bread. The version I am used to, you press the cross into the top with the handle of a long, wooden spoon.

This version called for cutting it. Not only cutting it, but cutting it deep!

And the results?

Were delicious! It tasted more like an oat quick bread rather than a traditional Irish soda bread, but that didn't stop it from being tasty. In fact... I just might make it again, but bake it in a loaf rather than in this shape.

I apologize for the previous two photos and the lack of "completed, full loaf" photos - it seems my camera setting was off, and the photos were way too dark, and I didn't notice it until I uploaded them.

But I did get a few that show how delicious it was once it was cut!

Yum! We even had some the next night with our chicken noodle soup. It was perfect.

So did you incorporate sourdough into your St. Patrick's Day celebration? Link up and share with us!

Preheat oven to 400 F.
Whisk together the starter, egg, liquid fat, and buttermilk until well combined.
If using the seeds, combine them and put about 1 T. aside in a small bowl for sprinkling on top of the loaf.
In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. Make a small well in the center of the mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir just until it begins to form a sticky dough. Add a little more buttermilk if it’s too dry and crumbly to form a ball (I didn't need to do this). Add a little flour if it’s so sticky you can’t shape it (again, I didn't need to do this).
(The dough can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours (covered) if you would like - when you're ready to bake, just remove from refrigerator an hour before baking to allow to return to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 400F 15-20 minutes before baking.)
Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently once or twice, just until the texture is even. Lightly flour a baking sheet and place the ball on the sheet.
Cut a deep “x” in the top (cuts should go at least 1/3 of the way through the loaf, or deeper if desired — 101 Cookbooks says 2/3 of the way through).
Brush the top with buttermilk (or regular milk, or melted butter or lard, or a beaten egg) and sprinkle with the remaining seeds, if using.
Bake 35-40 minutes, or until the top and bottom are brown and the internal temperature is at least 190F (a metal skewer inserted into the center should come out clean).
Let cool 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Monday, March 17, 2014

Because it's a blog that I know. And love. And I wanted to make everything. Every. Thing.

This month my assigned blog was Amy's Cooking Adventure. But please don't click over there yet. Because you'll get so lost in all the deliciousness that you'll forget to come back here. So wait until after you've read this one before you head over there. Please?

As I said, I wanted to make absolutely everything from Amy's blog. And... umm... I kinda made a few. Three. And I stopped myself there because I didn't want to make it any harder for myself to choose which one I'd post. And, since I will definitely be sharing the others with you, I didn't want to create too long of a backlog of posts. But I'll be making more. And more. And more. Because... umm... yum.

The recipe that I chose to post was not complicated, but holy smokes was it tasty. S'mores Bark. Holy smokes, talk about decadent deliciousness. I mean, you all know how much I love s'mores, so how could I not try this?

It starts with a layer of graham crackers.

Then melted chocolate.

And then you top that off with mini-marshmallows.

Pretty much what you'd think, right? But then you make it AWESOME. But that under the broiler to toast up the marshmallows and then, as soon as it comes out, press in some graham cracker crumbs and chocolate squares. Or, what I did instead - drizzle more melted chocolate over the whole thing.

Oh yes I did.

Then comes the hard part.

Put it in the fridge and let it set. Yup, that means you have to wait. I mean, I suppose you could dive in right away, but it'd be soft and gooey and messy... which... come to think of it... doesn't sound so terrible... but I promise. It's good this way, too!!

Once it's set, break it into pieces as best as you can.

And then? Try not to eat the whole tray in once sitting.

It's harder than it sounds.

This stuff was SO good. EVERYONE loved it. Me, the kids, the kids' friends, the neighbors... yeah. It's that good.

I even sprinkled the crumbs of it on top of ice cream one night. *swoon*

Trust me. Try this.

And keep checking back so you can see the other awesome recipes of Amy's that I made!

8 graham crackers, broken in quarters, divided (I actually used about 14 because I used a big cookie sheeet - just use as many as you need to fill the tray you choose)
12 oz semi sweet chocolate (I used chips)
2 cups mini marshmallows
1 (1.55 oz) Hershey bar, broken into 12 pieces (I melted another couple of tablespoons of semi-sweet chocolate to keep this dairy-free)

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (not parchment or waxed paper).
Arrange all but two graham cracker quarters in a rectangle on the lined baking sheet. They don't have to be touching, but you want them in a good, single layer.
Meanwhile, melt the chocolate using your preferred method (I microwaved the chocolate chips in 30 second increments, but you could use a double boiler if you prefer).
Once the chocolate is fully melted and smooth, pour it over the graham crackers, smoothing it evenly with a spatula. Some chocolate will go between the crackers and may go over the edges. This is not a problem.
Quickly pour the mini marshmallows over the melted chocolate. Move the tray to the refrigerator for 10 minutes to harden the chocolate slightly. While the tray is in the fridge, preheat the oven to broil.
Remove the tray from the refrigerator and place it under the broiler (this is why we’re using aluminum foil instead of parchment paper!). Leaving the oven open a crack so you can keep a close eye on things, broil the bark for 1-2 minutes, watching constantly, until the marshmallows are lightly browned.
Remove the tray from the oven. Quickly sprinkle the reserved graham cracker pieces over the marshmallows, then drizzle with the additional melted chocolate (or press in the pieces of Hershey bar, if that's what you choose).
Return the tray to the refrigerator for 1 hour or until the chocolate is completely hardened. Break the S’more bark into smaller pieces. Serve cold and refrigerate leftovers.

Friday, March 14, 2014

There are times when I'm cooking, or looking at food blogs, or looking for recipe ideas when I'll think "hey! That would make a great challenge!"

Well, this month, when we needed a challenge idea in a hurry, we got the chance to actually make one of those ideas happen!

For March’s Daring Cooks’ Challenge, Ruth, Shelley and Sawsan asked us to totally veg out! We made salads and dressings, letting the sky be the limit as we created new flavors and combinations that reflect our own unique tastes.

Yup, Ruth, Sawsan and I had the chance to challenge the Daring Cooks to get creative and create their own salad dressings to dress up any kind of salad they chose.

And let me tell you - it was fun. And delicious. And creative. And made me want lots and lots of salad over the course of the month!

For my dressing (I mean, aside from the challenge), I went with a taste of summer, in hopes that it'll make this crazy, cold, snowy winter finally leave.

Strawberries.

Let me tell you - dressings are actually really easy to make. This is a fresh berry vinaigrette style dressing and it was super fast and super simple. Some berries, some spices (salt and pepper are plenty!), some balsamic vinegar and a blender.

Add a bit of olive oil to bring it all together...

...and you're ready!

Seriously, that's it. And it's so much better than what you can buy in the supermarket.

Little man liked it so much, henot only dipped his lettuce in it (yes, he dips rather than drizzles. Whatever works!), he also dipped his turkey in it. And his bread. And his fingers. That's good praise from a three year old!

Ruth and Sawsan, you guys are miracle workers - thank you so much for helping pull this off so deliciously and for helping us have so much delicious fun this month!!

If you want to see the super fun, creative and delicious dressings created in the Kitchen this month, check them out here.

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Roasts, steaks - I somehow always manage to overcook them. Pot roast and stew, I'm good - those are allowed to be all the way done. But steaks and roasts? They're supposed to have color and flavor. And for some reason, I've always had trouble doing them just right.

But eye round roasts were on sale last week and I really wanted to try again. And I found a recipe online that seemed both easy and crazy enough to try.

It starts off normally enough with a spice rub. I chose (from right to left) thyme, ground black pepper, garlic powder and kosher salt.

Mix all of that together and rub it all over the roast.

And then you cook. But it's not your standard "roast at 325/350 for xx minutes per pound." Oh no. You start in a hot oven. Very hot. Between 475 and 500 degrees hot. Seven minutes per pound at that temperature. I had a 2.1 pound roast. I did 15 minutes.

The recipe then tells you to turn the oven off and don't touch anything (don't even open the door a crack to peek!) for two and a half hours.

This worried me a little.

First, that's a long time. And my roast wasn't all that big. And would the oven hold any heat by the end of that time? And, my biggest issue... I pick little miss up from school at 3:30 and we eat dinner at 6:00. There just wasn't time.

Luckily, one of the comments to the recipe said that for worry-warts like me, instead of turning the oven off completely, you can lower the temperature to a low 200 degrees (again, not opening the door at all) and continue roasting the meat for 20 more minutes per pound. I did 45 minutes.

And when I finally opened the oven, this is what greeted me.

Not sure if you can tell (dinnertime lighting isn't the best for photographing food...), but it had a nice dark crust on it, but was still plenty juicy. I tented it with foil and let it rest for 15 minutes.

And then we cut.

Well would you look at that.

That's pink.

I didn't kill it.

And it tasted outstanding. All four of us (two adults and two children!) love it. Asked for seconds. And gobbled it all up.

(with the obligatory gravy, mushrooms, baked potatoes and broccoli!)

I'm definitely going to try this again. And I'm going to be brave and try the oven-off method, too.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
Season roast with spices of your choice. I combined mine to make a rub, but do what you feel comfortable with. Place the seasoned roast in a roasting pan. Do not cover. Do not add any liquid.
Once the oven is fully preheated, place the roast in the oven. Roast for seven (7) minutes per pound.
After the seven minutes per pound, turn the oven off completely, do not open the oven door, and allow the roast to continue cooking for two and a half hours.
Alternatively, if time does not permit for that or if you are concerned about letting it sit for that long, after the seven minutes per pound, reduce the temperature to 200 degrees (again, without opening the oven door) and low-roast the beef for an additional twenty (20) minutes per pound.
After the two and a half hours or second, low roast, remove the beef fromthe oven and allow it to rest for 10-20 minutes before cutting.

Saturday, March 1, 2014

The other day, I was looking for inspiration for something to bake to bring to a friend's house. The kids were going to play, the moms were going to chat, and, well, who doesn't love an afternoon snack? I decided to make a chocolate cinnamon pullapart bread and it was quite a hit.

The next day, while perusing facebook, I came across a post from a friend and fellow food blogger for something she called apple fritter bread.

Oh. My. Gosh. It looked so good. Similar to the pullapart bread I'd just made, but with a fresh apple caramel filling.

So, despite the fact that I didn't have a real reason, I decided I was going to make it. Like... right away.

I modified the recipe a bit to make it dairy free, and it actually came together pretty easily.

It starts with the filling. In a skillet, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, cornstarch and coconut oil (or butter if you want).

Then add in lots of diced fresh apples.

Then cook that all down until it's bubbly and delicious.

While the filling cools, prepare the dough. It comes together very easily, similar to other sweet, enriched doughs I have made before. The difference? Despite the fact that it's a yeasted dough, the recipe doesn't call for the dough to rest. So as soon as the dough is kneaded and ready, you can go ahead and roll it out!

The recipe calls for the filling to then be poured over the dough. My caramel was still a bit looser than I'd expected, so I used a slotted spoon and fished out the apples (taking only some of the caramel with me) and spread them over the dough. I then used a pizza cutter to cut the dough into squares.

The squares were then piled into a loaf pan, and then I poured the remaining caramel over the top.

I was actually concerned when I saw quite how much caramel there was... worried that it might not all absorb into the dough and that it would be a goopy mess at the end, but I put it in the oven and figured I'd see what happened.

Tip if you try this - put a piece of foil under your pan. As the dough bakes and grows in the oven, some of that caramel sauce spills out. You don't want that on your heating element or baked to the bottom of your oven. Or, in my case, baking onto your pizza stone that you keep on the bottom shelf of the oven. Oops. I put the foil there after the first couple of drips.

But let me tell you something.

It was worth it.

This thing looked and smelled so amazingly delicious, I didn't even mind scraping off the pizza stone.

I pulled it from the oven, removed it from the pan, then immediately left to pick up little miss from school.

And we returned home to a super awesome after-school snack.

Little miss and the friend she was rainbow-looming with absolutely loved it. Little man, well, not as much. But that's okay. Because little miss and I are certainly happy to enjoy his share of it.

Now, I definitely felt that the bread was more caramel-apple-y than apple-fritter-y, so I'm calling it Caramel Apple Bread. I hope that's okay.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.First prepare the filling.
In a skillet, cook apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, vanilla, butter (coconut oil), cinnamon and cornstarch until mixture is thickened. Set aside to cool.While the filling cools, prepare the dough.
Heat the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles; remove from heat. Add the butter (coconut oil) and stir until melted; set aside to cool until just warm.
Put flour, yeast, brown sugar and salt in a bowl (I used the bowl of my stand mixer), mix well.
Add the water, egg and milk/butter (coconut oil) mixture.
Mix until dough forms into a ball; knead for an additional five minutes. I used the dough hook attachment of the stand mixer to knead the dough.
At this point, I let the dough rest for about 15 minutes, though the original recipe does not call for a rest. The choice is yours.

On a well floured surface, roll dough into a rectangle.
Evenly spread apple mixture over dough.
Cut dough into even squares, I got about 20 with my dough.
Using a spatula, place piles of dough into prepared pan. Tip it on it's side a bit and put the piles upright. It will be a bit messy, but it's okay.
Bake the bread for 45-50 minutes; until golden brown. I recommend placing a sheet of foil under the pan to catch any of the syrup that drips out during baking. I also checked the bread about 30 minutes into the baking process and tented it with more foil to keep the top from getting too dark. Once the bread is done, immediately remove from pan.
Allow to cool a bit before serving.